


First Date

by MiteyMidget



Series: Reunion 'verse [2]
Category: Drake & Josh
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-14
Updated: 2017-05-14
Packaged: 2018-10-31 19:01:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10905495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiteyMidget/pseuds/MiteyMidget
Summary: AU, Future fic. It’s just dinner, right? Josh shouldn’t be this nervous.





	First Date

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted to LJ in July of 2008. Beta credit goes to amberdowny.

The day after the reunion, Josh spends a full hour pacing with his cordless phone in one hand and Drake’s business card in the other. He even starts to dial the number a couple of times, but chickens out only a few digits in. His hands are damp with sweat and his heart is beating double-time.

Josh wants to go to dinner. He really does, but since the night before some tiny part of him has started to give him doubts. What could he and Drake possibly have to talk about for a whole dinner? Wouldn’t it just save him a wasted evening if he didn’t call and make those plans at all? Drake probably wouldn’t even notice. In fact, he’s probably already forgotten about Josh and their very vague dinner plans.

Except Josh just doesn’t do things like that. If he says he’ll do something, he does it, no matter how much he feels like he wants to throw up. Did asking Mindy out for the first time feel like this? He doesn’t think so, and this isn’t even a date.

With his heart in his throat, Josh finally gets through all seven digits with shaking fingers. Drake picks up on the third ring.

“Hello?”

“Hey.” Josh’s voice comes out high pitched and squeaky. He clears his throat and continues. “Hey, it’s Josh. We, uh, talked at the reunion last night?”

“Oh! Hey, man!” Drake actually sounds like he’s glad to hear from him and it calms some of Josh’s nerves. “I was hoping you’d call. We still on for tonight?”

Josh is nodding before he realizes that Drake can’t see him. “Yeah. Yes, of course. What time did you want to meet?”

“Seven sound okay to you? I’m probably going to be pretty busy until then, but it gives me an excuse not to stay any longer than I really have to.”

“If you’ve got something important going on, we can go at a later hour,” Josh protests. “Or reschedule.”

Drake laughs, and the sound is pleasant even over the phone. “No, seriously, you’re doing me a favour here. I always get held up at these things talking to people I’d rather avoid. Being able to say I have to be somewhere else will be a godsend.”

Josh relents, though he’s still unsure. “If you say so. I don’t want to be a hassle.”

“It’s not a hassle, Josh,” Drake says, and Josh realizes it’s the first time Drake’s used his name, that he hadn’t said it at all last night. There’s something intimate about the sound of it coming from Drake. Something that he isn’t sure that he wants to examine too closely.

“All right. Just so long as you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.” Drake’s voice is a mix of exasperation and amusement. “See you at seven?”

“Seven, yes.”

“Good. Great. I’ll see you then.”

The call disconnects and Josh stands staring at the phone until the dial tone comes on. He hits the end button and drops the phone onto its cradle. Then he collapses onto the couch.

The next few hours are complete chaos. Josh's closet consists mostly of things he'd wear in the classroom, but he manages to dig out a pair of black slacks and a blue button down that one of his ex-girlfriends had bought him when she'd decided to dress him. Everything else ends up in a pile on his bed. He feels a pang at leaving the mess, but he doesn't have enough time to tidy.

He showers, shaves and tries to tame his hair into something approaching neat. He stops short of slicking back the mess of dark curls. Looks like it might be time for a haircut. 

Josh isn't a vain man by any definition of the word, but by the time he’s done and steps back to look at himself in the mirror, he thinks he hasn't done a bad job at making himself look presentable. Probably not quite up to snuff with what Drake's used to, but at least he's not going out in his usual absent-minded professor ensemble.

He's so nervous during the drive to the bistro that he doesn't remember half of it. It's just lucky that he didn't either make a wrong turn or get pulled over. Thankfully, though, he's able to shake it off as he slams his car door shut with a clunk.

Drake's already there waiting for him, ten minutes before they'd agreed to meet. Josh is a little surprised at this, considering he'd never exactly been known for his punctuality. He stands up to greet Josh, looking dapper in a pair of designer jeans, a t-shirt and a dark blazer.

"Hey," he says, grasping Josh's hand in a quick, firm handshake. "I'm glad you could make it."

Josh smiles as they both sit, shrugging his shoulders. "Yeah, well, my personal life isn't exactly bustling with activity. Your invitation was kind of hard to refuse."

"That doesn't make me any less glad," Drake insists. He nods towards a couple of menus sitting in the centre of their table. "Did you want to order now?"

Josh nods. "Might as well. It'll be a couple minutes before the food comes, anyway."

They lapse into a comfortable silence until a waiter comes, pours them a glass of ice water and takes their order. Josh orders a pasta dish and a green salad and Drake, with a smile, orders the same. 

"So," Josh starts, "what exactly were you doing this afternoon that you needed an escape plan?"

Drake grimaces, one of his fingers trailing through the condensation on his water glass. "Just a media thing. My publicist thought this would be a great opportunity for me to be seen with the it crowd of San Diego. It was some kind of cocktail party. Lousy food, lousy music and lousy company."

"That sounds... kind of boring," Josh admits.

"You have no idea," Drake agrees. "Going into this, I thought it was going to be all about music and pretty girls, you know? Turns out half of it's being seen with the right people."

"So why do you keep doing it?" Josh asks, honestly curious. He hadn't thought of stardom from Drake's perspective.

"It's the other half of it that I stick around for," Drake says, head tilted, eyes coming up to meet Josh's across the table. "When I'm on stage or in the studio or someone stops to tell me how much they like one of my songs it makes it worth it."

Josh nods his understanding. "I guess there's a little bit of sacrifice in whatever career you pursue."

"How about you? Why are you a teacher? Besides being good at it, I mean." The question is abrupt, like Drake is trying to deflect some of the attention away from himself. Josh figures turnabout is fair play.

"I like kids and I like to see people learning something. It means long hours and I get the brunt of a lot of their frustration, but there's nothing as satisfying as seeing one of my kids graduating through to high school."

"You seem happy," Drake observes.

"I am, mostly," Josh says. 

"Only mostly?"

Josh is stopped from answering the question when the waiter comes back with their food. It's a bit of a relief, because he's not quite sure how he would have answered in the first place. Their conversation is veering toward personal at an uncomfortable rate.

"I have all of your CD's, you know," Josh says, as he unwraps his fork from the linen napkin. It's more of an escape than anything else, trying to put them back on another topic.

"Really?" Drake looks genuinely surprised. "For some reason I didn't peg you as the type."

"My girlfriend left most of them behind after a bad break-up," he admits ruefully. "When your next album came out I couldn't stand to keep the set incomplete."

Drake actually laughs. "Now that sounds a little more believable. Although, I'm a little insulted that your ex didn't think I was worth the effort of getting them back."

"I'm kind of glad she didn't. By the time we'd cooled down enough to actually talk without starting another argument I'm not sure I would have given them up. It could have caused another nasty scene."

"Couldn't bear to be parted with me, could you?" Drake grins and forks some of his pasta into his mouth. A dollop of tomato sauce escapes and slips down his chin.

"Oh no," Josh snorts and reaches over with his napkin to wipe at the mess. "I definitely couldn't be parted with you."

Drake's grin morphs into something softer. "You're a regular mother hen, you know that?"

Josh looks away, blushing as he pulls his arm back to his side of the table. "Sorry. It's that OCD problem kicking in again."

"Hey, it's okay," Drake reassures. He leans forward, quirking his eyebrows. "I don't know about you, but I'd prefer not to walk around with tomato sauce all over my face. Can you imagine how that would look in the papers?"

“You have a point,” Josh relents, relaxing enough to look at him again. That could have been awkward. Sometimes when his defences are down he forgets that some people aren’t as tactile as he is. “Wouldn’t want your slobbishness outed to all of your fans.”

“My secret’s safe with you, huh?” There’s amusement in Drake’s bright eyes, and something else too. Something like wistfulness.

“Always,” he promises.

The air around them becomes suddenly charged. Drake’s gaze turns more intense as it locks with Josh’s. The world narrows and suddenly it’s just the two of them. It’s new and frightening, but Josh feels a sudden spark of attraction so strong that even a deeply rooted habit of self-denial can’t smother it. His ridiculous bout of nerves suddenly makes sense, as well as a few things he remembers growing up.

Just as suddenly as it had disappeared, the world snaps back into place and the muffled din of the bistro seems more like a roar. Josh studies the room, feeling kind of like a veil has been lifted. He takes in the soft glow of candlelight and the faint sound of violin music coming from a set of speakers. He'd been too distracted when he first arrived to notice, but the whole place gives off a romantic vibe that should have been pretty hard to miss. Not exactly a place most old acquaintances go to do a little bit of catching up.

“Is this a date?” he asks. It’s not a question, not really. Josh already knows the answer, but he wants confirmation just in case.

Drake stiffens, hand clenching around his fork. The colour has drained from his face and he isn’t looking at Josh anymore, but down at his plate. “Uh, maybe?” He takes a shuddery breath and risks a quick glance up through his shaggy bangs. “Do you want it to be?”

The hint of vulnerability in his voice takes Josh a little by surprise. Drake seems honestly worried about his reaction and that is a little mind blowing. He cares if Josh is offended. 

It makes Josh think about this whole thing from Drake’s point of view. Maybe he didn’t set this whole thing up to be more than just a dinner between friends, but it looks like it’s on its way there, and Drake’s shown every indication of wanting it to take that direction. He still hasn’t lied about it, either. In fact, Drake’s the one who’s putting all of his cards out there on the table. He’s the one who’s taking the plunge, risking his reputation on the off chance that Josh might be interested. That’s just… That’s unbelievable.

Josh is touched and flattered and so many things all at once. He just sits there gaping at Drake for too many strained, silent moments, trying to comprehend it. Across the table Drake seems to wilt, taking his speechlessness as rejection. He starts to withdraw.

“Wait,” Josh says urgently, grabbing hold of Drake’s wrist. His voice is so rough in that moment he hardly recognizes the sound. “Wait – Just wait a second, okay? That’s a lot to take in.”

Drake nods jerkily, his eyes a little wild. In this moment he’s a far cry from the suave celebrity that had jumped up to greet him. It’s a little startling for Josh to realize the kind of power he has over Drake right now, to realize that, like Drake with the crowd last night, he’s the one in control.

“Y-you, uh, you really…?” Josh can’t quite believe this is happening. He wonders hysterically if he’s still in bed right now, having some sort of whacked out dream.

Drake gives another nod. “I – Yeah. I didn’t exactly mean for you to figure it out, but, yeah. Sorry.”

“No. No. Hey, don’t apologize!” Josh orders. “It’s just a really big surprise. You being you and me being me, I mean.”

“Is this the part where you tell me you’re flattered and then skip out and leave me with the bill?” Drake asks wearily. “’Cause if it is, I’d just like to skip that part.”

Josh runs a frustrated hand through his hair, dislodging a few rebellious curls. "I'm not going to skip out on you, Drake." He gives a shaky little laugh. "I wasn't expecting it, but that doesn't mean I don't like it."

Drake's head whips up and he stares Josh in bewildered surprised. "What? Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"So you, like, want to...?"

"Well, this was already a date, wasn't it? You call a fork a fork, a rose a rose and a tree a tree. Why shouldn't we call this dinner what it actually is?" It's said with more confidence than he actually feels, but as he's saying it, he actually believes it. He wants this to be a date and so, apparently, does Drake.

“Great. Good. Awesome.” The smile’s back on Drake’s face, the tension draining from his shoulders.

After that, things don’t go back to the easy banter of before, but it’s at least comfortable now. Josh finds out more about Drake in one sitting than he had the entire time the two of them went to school together and Josh finds himself sharing silly little details that he’s not sure he’s told anyone before. Things he’s never thought other people might think worth knowing. It’s surreal how easy it is.

There’s a slow burn on the surface of it all, even as the night winds down. Like now that he’s faced this attraction or whatever it is, Josh can’t hide from it. He’s strangely disappointed that Drake doesn’t try to weasel out an invitation back to his apartment, despite the fact he wouldn’t know exactly what to do with Drake even if he had him.

Still, Drake walks him to his car, looking just as disappointed to be calling it a night. “You’ve still got my business card right?” he asks and then continues at Josh’s nod. “Give me a call any time, day or night. I’ll pick up. My email’s there, too, if you just want to chat.”

“You don’t have my number.” Josh starts to fumble around in his pockets for a pen and a loose piece of paper before Drake stops him.

The other man grins wickedly. “Call display, Josh. I got your number when you called me earlier today.”

“Oh. Right.”

“So we’ll do this again sometime.” Drake’s expression turns more serious. “I had a good time tonight, even if it turns out you were just humouring me.”

Josh can’t quite prevent himself from rolling his eyes. “Again, I’m not humouring you. If anything, I’d think you were humouring me. Lonely biology teacher bags handsome rocker? Yeah, that really sounds like something out of some cheesy romance novel.”

“Bags, Josh? You think you ‘bagged’ me?”

“Uh, did I say bagged? I meant woo. I’ve-“

The rest of the sentence is lost when Drake suddenly swoops up and kisses him, cutting off the stream of words so completely that Josh can’t even remember what he was going to say.

The next few moments are lost in the sudden sensation of Drake’s mouth against his, slow and sweet. Not enough and too much. It’s almost chaste, but the effect it’s having on him makes it so much more. He can feel it straight down to his toes.

When the kiss tapers off, Josh is surprised to find his hands fisted in the fabric of Drake’s blazer. He hastily lets go, red-faced at his lack of self awareness as he tries to brush out the wrinkles in the material. Drake hums amusedly and shakes his head at his antics. Then he pulls away.

“Call me,” he says again, and like the night before, he’s backing away.

Josh doesn’t respond, but he stares after him even after he’s long gone.


End file.
